Mismatched
by Sylvr
Summary: I'm not going to give much away, except this is a dark, suicidal death-fic. Happy, right? T for death. ArtemisxHolly
1. Chapter 1

M I S M A T C H E D

_...Then he whispered, with the last of the air in his lungs, unheard and uselessly, "Holly."_

One dancing hazel eye, confined in the strict, angular lines of his sombre face, gazed deep into the incalculable depths of magic and found that sometimes, the impossible really was.

Trapped in his own face, the lone eye, far outshining his own bland blue, was all that he had left of her. The rest of the fiery elf had turned her back on him and taken the shuttle down to Haven. And every time he looked in the mirror, that hazel eye haunted him with the last glimpse he'd had of its partner—a scornful glance in his direction, cut short by the hiss of the shuttle doors sealing tight. Sometimes he wondered if perhaps the eye was driving him mad, because he sometimes thought he saw her silhouette late at night, and sometimes when he thrashed in the grip of his nightmares, (he dreamed of her and what he'd done to her) he felt her hand on his face, soothing him.

But he knew that this was only his mind—or perhaps her eye—playing tricks on him, because she would never want to comfort him again after what he had done. Or rather, what he had failed to do. And she was right to not forgive him, because he had failed her when she needed him the most.

He had hesitated, miscalculated, and it had cost Trouble Kelp his life.

Minerva had gone insane, blaming the fairies for taking her "beloved Artemis" from her for three years during the Lost Colony escapade. She'd used all of her formidable intellect to hatch a plot that would destroy the magical race, and had, People and Mud Boy unsuspecting, launched it into action. She genetically engineered a disease that would target and annihilate anything with magic, unaware that her own Artemis had magic of his own and would be killed along with the fairies. It had very nearly succeeded, but Artemis had discovered the plan and warned the People. They, in turn, had sent a strike force of Haven's best officers to stop her. Artemis, being the one who knew her best, went along.

It had gone horribly, horribly wrong.

Artemis had miscalculated. Consumed by madness, Minerva's mind didn't work the way he had come to expect, and her insanity led her in erratic, ingenious directions. She had discovered the strike team as soon as they set foot on her property by way of trained, cyborg rats, and set traps accordingly. (Rats could see through the shield.) The entire team had been captured, Artemis included. They had been chained in her basement, watching as she prepared to loose her creation. But she became sidetracked by Artemis's prescience and began attempting—disgustingly--to seduce him. As he continuously rejected her advances, she became more and more enraged. Finally, she shrieked that he would kiss her or she would kill one of the officers. Repulsed, the genius had hesitated for only a moment, and she had shot Trouble in the head. There was no chance of healing. Mere moments later, the backup team had arrived and stopped the deranged genius, but the damage had been done. The People were safe, but Holly would never forgive Artemis for failing to save the man she had thought she might love.

Artemis didn't blame her. He hurt her so badly so many times it was a wonder that it had taken her that long to hate him.

Instead, Artemis blamed himself; hated himself.

And with no thought of the potential consequences to his own wellbeing, he poured himself into the only thing he could think of that might possibly atone for what he had done to Holly Short.

Resurrection.

He looked into every branch of magic and into the most obscure of sciences, and found nothing. No one had gotten anywhere near success. Every lead was a dead end. He spent his private fortune searching for any solution, even one that was incomplete. (1) He strove with every fiber of his being to find an answer, no matter what it took.

His hunt had led him to this place of last resorts and final wishes, where the raw magic of the earth itself swirled and snarled. This place of bottom lines and untainted, unalterable truths. He asked his question of the primal magics that sustained life itself, and the magic said NO.

No.

It was impossible. There was no bringing back Trouble Kelp, and no redemption for Artemis Fowl.

For the second time in his life, Artemis Fowl failed to do what he had set out to accomplish.

Lost, broken and hopeless, he returned to Fowl Manor. His parents, brothers and the Butlers were gathered in the living room, unaware that he had come back. They were playing a game of Chutes and Ladders, and having a wonderful time. They were the picture of an ideal family. Undetected, Artemis stood in the doorway, cloaked in shadows, and knew that he was not really a part of the family. His long absence had changed him too much, and he had been so different to begin with. Looking back with the clear vision of hindsight, he realized that he had never fit at all. This, here in the living room, was what the Fowl family should have been all along.

Artemis had no place there.

Silent and sombre, he made his way to his study and wrote a brief note. He told his parents that he loved them, his brothers that he would miss getting to see them grow up, and the Butlers that he was endlessly grateful for their help and support. Then he wrote an explanation in Gnommish (so that only the Butlers could read it—and any fairy as well, he supposed.) as to why he had chosen to do what he was about to do. They deserved that much, at least. He signed it with his name, and he didn't cry.

He didn't deserve to be allowed to cry, after what he'd done to Holly.

Then he slipped out of his window into the crisp January snow. It was cold, bitingly so, and he wasn't dressed for the weather in his thin shirt and slacks, which were better suited to the near-boiling temperatures of the earth's magical core. But soon enough heat and cold wouldn't matter.

Fresh and pristine, the snow coated over the manor, leaving everything a stark, sparkling white. Even with all landmarks obscured in the blank ice, his feet found their way unerringly through the grounds. They took him to a small, deep pond, tucked away in a secluded corner of the gardens, rarely noticed. He didn't know how many times he had visited this place in the year since Trouble had died, knowing what the price of failure would be.

And as he had countless times before, he stood at the edge of the pond and looked down at his reflection.

The ice was thin, perhaps only a centimeter thick, and clear as glass. His eyes stared back up at him—one his own, one hers. Both shone with condemnation and guilt.

_ His fault._

The clearing the pond was centered in was perfectly circular, and perhaps more beautiful tonight than he had ever seen it. But it was a cold beauty—sharp edged and heartless. It drew him in and warned him away all at once. Pure and crystalline in the silver moonlight, the clearing was perfectly suited to what he intended to do tonight.

Tucked under the dock were two lead weights he'd ordered many months ago, when he first realized that there was no hope. Since then, he'd been fueled by desperation, trying to find any way to resurrect Trouble. But now the last lead had been followed, and he could finally rest.

The weights were shaped as acorns, to remind him of his guilt. He dropped one in each pocket, and ran over his mental checklist.

His necklace with the gold coin Holly had given him was tied around his neck, the note was written, and he hadn't done the Ritual in ages, so his magic couldn't save him.

This would be his final atonement and apology to Holly. A single tear slipped down his cheek, and froze before it could hit the ground. It shattered on the hard planking, and the moon glinted off the pieces.

All was as it should be.

An expression something akin to contentment covered his face, and he stepped off the dock.

The ice splintered around him as he plunged into the water, one fragment's razor sharp edge slicing a deep, narrow line across his chest. He didn't notice. His eyes were fixed on the moon as the water closed over his head and fogged his vision. He could feel the cold spidering towards his heart with frigid fingers, and the lack of oxygen made his head swim. The last thing he saw before his vision went black was a too-familiar shape suddenly blocking the moon.

_Even now,_ he thought, but without bitterness or resentment, _her eye tricks me. She is not here_.

Then he whispered, with the last of the air in his lungs, unheard and uselessly, "Holly."

His heart stopped, but his eyelids did not close over his mismatched eyes.

**A/N: Yes, yes, it's morbid and it's not an update on any of my WIPs. I'm currently working on a dozen different stories as well as the ones already posted—I want to get them all finished before I start posing any more chapters. Sporadic oneshots are all that let me retain my sanity, so you'll be getting those periodically. Sorry. Oh, by the way, Artemis isn't mine, though I wish he was. **

**Artemis has not bankrupted his family—he has used the money he gained illegally over the years, that his parents don't know about.**

**As always, REVIEW!!!**

**~Slvrstar**


	2. Chapter 2

M I S M A T C H E D

_...and the magic scurried down her fingers..._

~~O~~

She came for him, when it mattered.

She always had, and this time was no different.

On one of her rare, forbidden visits to the Manor, she had found a life sign out alone on the grounds, late at night, and known instantly who it must be. She had seen him out there before, at the pond.

Artemis.

But when his signal moved away from the dock and into the water, she had become suddenly terrified. What was he doing?

She dived shallowly across the grounds, loosing her shield, not caring if anyone saw. Artemis's sign was flickering, cooling. He was dying. Soon—_not soon enough, _her mind warned her sadistically—she could see him, sinking into the water. He mouthed her name, bubbles streaming haphazardly from his mouth. His eyes, one her own muddy hazel and one his own stunning sapphire blue, locked on her for a brief moment, and then she saw them flicker and die.

She hurled herself into the water, as she had for his father years ago.

She would not loose him too.

Holly ignored the biting cold as she wrapped her arms around his frame—too thin, she noted absurdly, hasn't he been eating?-and rocketed them out of the water onto the snowy bank.

His heart wasn't beating. Frantic, she placed her palms on his bare chest where the ice had sliced his shirt open, and whispered, "Heal."

And the magic scurried down her fingers.

Wave after wave of blue sparks—scarce shades lighter than his eyes-ran down her arms and sank into his chest, but his heart didn't start.

She forced more magic out—she'd be dry by the time she was done, not enough to mesmer or shield, but she didn't care. Artemis could not die.

Not him too.

She began to give up hope. She had been forcing magic into him for three minutes and he hadn't moved. Then, as her last spark rolled down her fingers and into his chest, his eyes flickered. He blinked, and breathed.

Holly collapsed on his chest, sobbing.

For a long moment, they lay that way. Artemis tried to process what had happened. He was supposed to be dead. Holly had saved him, of course, but why? He had hurt her so badly...

"Holly?" he whispered, his voice hoarse.

The elf shot upright.

"Artemis! D'Arvit, Mudboy, what were you doing? Do you have any idea how badly you just scared me? You idiot! What would I do if you died!" Angrily, she wiped the tears from her face and scowled at him.

The genius was confused. "I thought you hated me...?"

"No!" she cried, "Well, I did, but then I forgave you a couple months later, but the Council said you were a danger and I couldn't come see you or I would be exiled."

"But I..." he began, then coughed. This didn't make sense. "..I failed you; I hurt you. I don't deserve forgiveness. I kidnapped you and I lied to you. It's my fault Trouble died."

"No, it's not your fault, it's Minerva's. And I forgave you for the kidnapping and everything else a long time ago. You're pretty dumb for a genius."

"Why? I don't deserve-"

"D'Arvit, Artemis, forgiveness isn't about deserving! It's about grace."

"But I still don't understand. You should hate me." His voice became so quiet she almost didn't hear him. "_I_ hate me."

"Artemis," Holly stopped yelling, and laid one cool hand on his face, "I don't hate you. You're the best friend I've got. I think I would have died if you'd succeeded tonight."

For the second time that night, Artemis's heart stopped. "You-you would still call me your friend?"

Holly wrapped her arms around him again, offering what meager heat her own body could provide, aware that he was thinly clothed and soaking wet, and was doubtless getting hypothermia. She placed her head on his collarbone, and answered him. "Yes, Artemis, I would. You're like my brother."

She was terrified that he would reject her, and was instantly afraid that he was pushing her away when he began to move, but instead he drew himself into a seated position and wrapped one long fragile arm around her. His other hand clasped her chin and tilted her head so that he could look into her eyes. He found whatever he was looking for in those mismatched orbs, because he dropped his hand, buried his face in her cropped hair, and wept.

"I'm sorry, Holly, I'm so so sorry," he choked out, and she squeezed him tighter.

"All is forgiven; it's okay. It's okay," Holly replied, soothing him as she would a small child. And perhaps, in this moment, that was all he was—a child, afraid and guilty, and needing comfort. He had never really been allowed to be a child, and until this moment, Holly had not known that he could ever be as vulnerable as he was now.

For a brief eternity they sat there, mending that which had been broken. Then Holly tugged him to his feet and they set out towards the house, leaving the two lead weights and Artemis's guilt in the snow behind them. He followed her lead like a young, unsteady colt, and gently she guided him to the manor and through his bedroom window. Holly turned down his covers and ordered him to change into dry clothes and get in bed while she fetched Butler. As soon as the door closed behind her, he did as he was told and then crawled beneath the warm covers obediently. Scant seconds after he'd laid down, Butler burst into the room, almost twitching with worry. Holly hadn't told him what was wrong, just said Artemis needed him. He rushed to Artemis's side and set about a medical check. Artemis's pulse was slow but steady, and he was too cold, though Butler didn't doubt that he would be running a fever soon enough. After he was satisfied that Artemis was stable and wasn't going to die if he left the room, he darted back down to the kitchen to make some hot soup. On his way, he sent the Fowls parents and his sister upstairs to see Artemis, since the twins were in bed. Artemis needed his family now.

When the five arrived at the genius's door, they were surprised to see him in bed with a young girl seated on the mattress beside him, wrapped in a heavy blanket. Their hair was wet, and both were shivering violently. But despite the tremors, the girl was combing her fingers through Artemis's longer locks, whispering to him. His bicolored eyes were closed, and he was breathing evenly, asleep. At their noisy entrance the girl looked up with eyes identical to Artemis's own and shushed them.

"H-he's s-sleeping." she explained.

"Holly?" Juilet asked. "What's going on?"

"Yes," her brother agreed, "What happened?"

"A-artemis tried t-to k-kill hims-self." she stuttered, "And I c-came f-for him. But I was almost-t too late. I had t-to heal him. I'm out of m-magic n-now."

The naturally pale faces of the Fowl family turned even whiter at this news.

"Wh-what?" Artemis Fowl Senior stammered, not from cold but from disbelief.

Angeline took things with surprising strength. "Why?"

"I-he-um, how do I explain this…He b-blamed himself for the death of a friend of mine and thought I was angry at him, and he couldn't f-fix things, and he just-" Holly broke off, unable and unwilling to contemplate what Artemis had nearly done. "I just never thought he'd take it so hard. He never seems to c-care about things."

"Holly," Butler said, soup in hand, "this is the boy who took on an entire species of incredibly powerful beings just to heal his mother and find his father. Of course he took his closest friend seemingly abandoning him pretty hard. You've no idea what he's been up to since you left, how driven he's been. He just returned from the core of magic, if that helps you understand."

Holly's eyes widened. "He found the c-core? It's supposed to be totally inaccessible! It's been thousands of years since anyone made it in-it's practically a legend now. And going in is risking death; the core is just as likely to kill you as it is to answer your-r request."

"Artemis thought it was worth it to regain your friendship."

Holly turned her heart-shaped face to study her teenage friend, and in the process hiding her sudden tears from the Fowls and their bodyguards. She brushed her thin elfin fingers over his face. "Stupid m-mud boy."

Butler smiled, knowing exactly what Holly meant. He gave her a moment to collect herself, and the Fowls and his sister scrupulously pretended to not notice she was crying. Once she had control again, Butler placed his massive hand on her tiny shoulder, and said, "Yes, he is. But for now, he needs sleep, and you could do to eat some soup."

Holly eyed the steaming bowl warily. "No meat?"

"Just one-hundred-percent-organic vegetables."

"Give it h-here." Holly accepted the hot food, and carefully spooned it into her mouth. "There's a letter on the desk," she said between bites, "Not so necessary now, but you might want to read it."

Artemis Fowl I stepped quickly over to the desk, and picked up the piece of paper clearly marked, "_Mum and Dad." _This alone caused him to stop in shock; even as a small child, Artemis had never called his parents by anything other than Mother and Father. They had been trying to get him to shorten it for ages. With Angeline at his side, he unfolded the paper and the two of them read it. They were so intent on the letter, occasionally stopping to dry their eyes, that they didn't even notice the Butlers leaving and returning, arms laden with blankets. Artemis's bed was large enough that it could probably sleep four adults comfortably, so Holly didn't bother getting up, just curled up with her back against Artemis's. Juliet draped a thick quilt over the two of them, and Holly smiled at her drowsily.

"Thanks, Mud Girl."

"No problem, fairy. Now sleep."

Holly's mismatched eyes drifted shut, and her breathing slowed to match Artemis's. Butler shooed the family out of the room, dimming off the lights on his way out. There were a lot of issues they would have to deal with, but for now, the two reunited friends needed to sleep.

**A/N: I know some of you may object to the platonic Holly/Artemis pairing, but I'm terrible at writing romance. I had actually started this sequel right after I finished the original **_**Mismatched**_**, but it's taken me until now to finish it. Please Review!**


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